Turner was the only player to leave, having signed at three-year deal at Cardiff for a fee believed to be around the £750,000 mark up front and rising to over £1million subject to appearances.

And it is that money coming in, plus the fact that City get a sell-on fee from the sale of Scott Dann, who last night signed for Blackburn in a reported £8million deal, that appears to have strengthened the club’s resolve regarding any interest in the likes of Jutkiewicz and Sammy Clingan.

Centre-back Turner – a product of the club’s Academy system – had been part of a player-plus-cash deal that would have seen Bluebirds’ centre-forward Jon ‘The Beast’ Parkin come the other way.

But that part of the deal broke down yesterday lunchtime after the player and City failed to agree terms, resulting in a straight cash deal.

But that won’t have come as a huge disappointment to Thorn given that the 6ft 4 man mountain doesn’t exactly fit with his exciting brand of football.

The cash-strapped club managed to resist a £1million bid from Middlesbrough for Lukas Jutkiewicz, who Thorn sees as the ideal partner for Cody McDonald - the 25-year-old front man who hit 25 goals on loan at Gillingham last year.

Leeds United were believed to be interested in Sammy Clingan although it is understood that no firm offer was made.